Why Fight When You Can Make Friends in Undertale?

Do you ever feel guilty about all of the creatures you’re killing when you level grind in an RPG? I am reasonably sure that I have almost single-handedly wiped out the slime population in Dragon Quest, and done irreparable damage to every species of Ogre in Final Fantasy. It bugs me at times, so I’m really happy to hear that Toby Fox has come along and created an RPG where I can make friends with members of the monster population. In Undertale, the friendships you make are far more important than your experience level.

Undertale does have a combat system in place for those who want a more traditional RPG. In it, timing is key, and you can also dodge enemy attacks using several different shmup-style mini-games. Still, combat is only one way to deal with the creatures in your path, as you can speak to them, do funny things to entertain them, or show them mercy in other ways. Given that in the story of Undertale humans and monsters used to be buddies, it seems far more important to make some lasting friendships with the slavering, jagged-toothed creatures that roam the strange underground world. You did fall into their home, after all. How would you like it if someone dropped through your roof and then beat you up for getting mad about it?

If friendship isn’t quite enough, maybe you’ll chose to get even closer to a skeleton using the game’s light dating sim elements? Or maybe have a robot husband? If you feel it’s time that we started forming long-lasting, loving relationships with our monster populations, instead of stabbing them for their gold so you can buy some dumb helmet, then you need to try out the demo for Undertale. I’ve been fighting monsters for decades, it’s time to give friendship a chance.

For more information on Undertale and its development, you can head to the developer’s site or follow the game on Twitter and Tumblr. You can also vote for it on Steam Greenlight.